CBA Pro vs advice from a colleague: guidance every time you sit down to write
A colleague who has been through the CBA can tell you what worked for them. CBA Pro walks you through every competency with your regulator's framework, the questions assessors expect answered, and feedback on each draft, whenever you are ready to write. Your colleague stays free to do what only they can: confirm your work.
- Available whenever you write, not only when they are free
- Your regulator's framework, not theirs
- Keeps your validator's rating independent
Zero rejected CBAs after a CertNova review(Our P.Eng review record to date)
Facts and prices on this page checked 26 September 2026.
“The CBA doesn't want a general project summary. It wants your personal responsibility and judgment in a regulator language.”
The short answer
A colleague with a P.Eng gives you judgment and encouragement, but rarely hours of line-by-line help, and they may have used another association's system. CBA Pro gives you structured, on-demand guidance for every competency in your regulator's framework. The best setup uses both: CBA Pro to write, your colleague to check your facts.
CBA Pro vs a colleague's advice, side by side
Good advice and good tools do different jobs. Here is where each one helps.
| What matters | A colleague or mentor | CBA Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Available when you are writing | A colleague or mentorPartialWhen they have time, often evenings or weekends. | CBA ProStrongAny time, for every competency, as often as you need it. |
| Knows your regulator's current framework | A colleague or mentorPartialKnows the system they used, which may be a different association or an older version. | CBA ProStrongPersonalized to your association: its framework, character limits and what its assessors expect. |
| Asks for the evidence each indicator needs | A colleague or mentorPartialUsually general advice, such as add more detail or say what you did. | CBA ProStrongSpecific questions tied to each indicator, each with an example answer. |
| Feedback on each draft | A colleague or mentorDepends on their time and how well they remember the rules. | CBA ProStrongComments pinned to sentences, a readiness grade, and a 0 to 5 self-assessment against your regulator's minimum. |
| Keeps your validator independent | A colleague or mentorWeakIf the same person helps write your answers and then rates them, the line between applicant and validator blurs. | CBA ProStrongYou write with CBA Pro. Your validator rates your work and submits that rating separately. |
| Cost | A colleague or mentorFree, paid for in favours and patience. | CBA ProFree for one competency. Foundation $97, Progression $197, Professional $297, one-time, plus tax. |
A colleague is the better choice for
- Checking that your facts, dates and role are right.
- Choosing which projects best show each competency.
- Encouragement when the process feels long.
CBA Pro is the better choice when
- Writing each competency to your regulator's structure and limits.
- Working late, or in short sessions around your job.
- Getting consistent feedback on all 22 or 34 competencies.
Already have competencies written? CBA Pro writes new ones from your experience. For feedback on drafts you already have, CBA Review is the right service. About CBA Review
What PEO says about validators
“No, applicant self-assessments and validator ratings must be submitted to PEO separately. Validators should submit their ratings to PEO in confidence.”
PEO describes a validator as someone who can confirm and confidently rate your work experience. Keep that role clean: write your competencies yourself, with CBA Pro, and let your colleague rate them independently.
How CBA Pro works
- 1
Add your work history
Import your CV or add projects by hand, then check and edit each record. Drafts are built only from your records and your answers.
- 2
Answer questions about each competency
CBA Pro asks for the evidence each indicator needs, with an example answer under every question.
- 3
Get a draft built only from your answers
Anything you have not confirmed appears as a [placeholder] for you to fill, never as an invented detail.
- 4
Check it the way an assessor would
Comments are pinned to exact sentences, and you get a readiness grade and a 0 to 5 self-assessment against your regulator's minimum.
- 5
Enter it in your regulator's system
Copy each finished competency into your application, or export to Word or PDF on the Progression and Professional plans.
What applicants say
Farbod was referred to CertNova by a colleague. He compares writing his competencies with CBA Pro to how his wife wrote hers the year before.
Zero rejected CBAs after a CertNova review(Our P.Eng review record to date)
“It made it a lot easier compared to how my wife did it, because I know how hard it could be.”
“It wants your personal responsibility and judgment in a regulator language.”
From CertNova's Google reviews
I had a great experience working with the CertNova team. They helped and guided me through the process of preparing my PEO CBA application in a very professional and detailed way. Their team is kind, patient, knowledgeable, and detail-oriented. They clearly know what needs to be done and how to guide applicants properly. I really appreciated their support, clear feedback, and professional approach throughout the process. I highly recommend CertNova to anyone looking for reliable and professional help with their PEO CBA application.
I used CertNova to review and refine my Competency-Based Assessment (CBA) for my P.Eng. application, and the experience has been very valuable. Their team provided clear, detailed feedback that helped me better align my competency examples with the EGM's expectations and significantly improved the structure and quality of my submissions. What stood out most was their strong understanding of the CBA framework and their ability to identify gaps in my examples that I would have otherwise missed. Their comments were practical, precise, and easy to apply, which saved me a considerable amount of time during revisions and reduced the stress of the resubmission process. The support was professional, responsive, and focused on helping me strengthen my application rather than just making superficial edits. I would highly recommend CertNova to anyone preparing or revising their CBA competencies for their P.Eng. application.
I used CertNova's services to help with my Competency-Based Assessment (CBA) for my P.Eng. application, and I'm really happy with how it went. Their support saved me a lot of time and effort. The team was really knowledgeable, and easy to understand and work with. They made the whole process a lot less stressful. I'd definitely recommend CertNova to anyone working through the CBA or on the path to getting their P.Eng. license.
Reviews are quoted as written on CertNova's Google profile. Nobody can promise approval; your regulator decides.
Sources, checked 26 September 2026
- Professional Engineers Ontario, CBA (experience) FAQ
- Professional Engineers Ontario, P.Eng. application form (CBA), April 2026
- Competency Assessment system, operated by Engineers and Geoscientists BC
Competitor details are as each company published them on that date. Spotted something out of date? Email info@competencybasedassessment.ca and we will correct it.
More CBA Pro comparisons
CBA Pro vs ChatGPT
Not a chatbot: a P.Eng CBA guide backed by real review data, personalized to your association, that never invents a fact.
Read the comparisonCBA Pro vs free CBA samples
Samples show the shape of a strong competency. CBA Pro helps you write yours from your own projects.
Read the comparisonCBA Pro vs Practice PPE Exams
A course with AI scoring, or a workspace that writes each competency with you. Prices checked 26 September 2026.
Read the comparisonCBA Pro vs a colleague's advice: questions applicants ask
Yes, advice from a colleague is valuable, especially on which projects to use and whether your facts are right. The writing itself should be yours: PEO's application asks you to certify that you prepared all included work samples yourself.
Keep the roles separate. PEO describes a validator as "someone who can confirm and confidently rate an applicant's work experience", and says applicant self-assessments and validator ratings "must be submitted to PEO separately". A validator who co-wrote your answers ends up rating their own words.
Frameworks differ. PEO uses 34 competencies, APEGA uses its own framework of 22, and EGBC and APEGS use the Competency Assessment system, with its own character limits. Advice from another association, or from an older version of the process, may not fit yours. CBA Pro personalizes the guidance to your association.
It is there every time you write. It asks the specific questions each indicator needs, shows an example answer under every question, drafts only from your own material, and gives you comments, a readiness grade and a self-assessment score on each competency.
If you can get a licensed P.Eng to read it, do. If you want a structured human review of drafts you have already written, our CBA Review service does that.
One full competency is free, with no card. Paid plans are one-time payments: Foundation is $97 for 10 competencies, Progression is $197 for 22, and Professional is $297 for all 34, plus tax. Upgrading costs only the difference, and everything you wrote carries over.
In short
CBA Pro vs advice from a colleague: a colleague with a P.Eng offers judgment, encouragement and a check on facts, but limited time and possibly a different association's framework. CBA Pro offers on-demand, step-by-step guidance for every competency, personalized to the applicant's association and drafted only from the applicant's own facts. PEO requires applicant self-assessments and validator ratings to be submitted separately, so a colleague who will validate should not co-write. CertNova's P.Eng review record: zero rejected CBAs after a CertNova review. One competency is free; paid plans are $97 to $297 CAD one-time.
Write your CBA from your own experience
Start with one full competency, free and with no card, or see what each plan includes. Everything you write carries over when you upgrade.